Abstract

In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:EditorialEstelle R. JorgensenSince music education was introduced into publicly supported general education, the philosophy underpinning its work has been influenced by wider philosophical currents. Naturalism, romanticism, pragmatism, positivism, existentialism, and aesthetic formalism and expressionism were particularly important in music education over the period from the early nineteenth century until the latter twentieth century. During the past three decades, newer intellectual currents of critical theory, feminism, social constructionism, liberation theology, and post-structuralism influenced praxialist writers in music education and others who took a liberal and analytical perspective, critiqued the modernism of much music education, and eventually, somewhat belatedly, arrived at postmodernism and neo-liberalism. At this moment, the philosophical directions of music education are in flux, as some philosophers explore post-modernism, others hew to neo-liberalism, and still others rethink philosophies of the past for the present. Still, whatever paths they follow, the global realities of terror, multicultural tensions and imperatives, political forces of authoritarianism that threaten democratic processes and institutions, and the impact of profound technological, political, religious, and economic changes influence philosophers of music education today.In June 2013, I heard a panel conversation by Panagiotis Kanellopoulos, Patrick Schmidt, Lauri Väkevä, and Eleni Lapidaki at the Philosophy of Music Education International Symposium 9 at Teachers’ College, Columbia University devoted to an exploration of “some music education certainties” through the lenses of writings by Hegel, Foucault, Rancière, and Derrida. In particular, the panel addressed issues of power and knowledge and conceptions of mastery and the institution of music education, drawing on the insights of these writers for [End Page 1] various aspects of the practice of music education. The papers at that time were not fully developed and I asked the authors to work up their critical commentaries on music education as complete essays that addressed not only the critiques they offered but also the possibilities they suggested for music education. The panelists undertook this task with serious purpose and we now have the benefit of hopeful visions of what music education might be. Although their critiques of the institution of music education may be discomforting for those who are invested in the status quo, our writers, collectively and from an international perspective, offer a rich array of suggestions for its practice. Whether it be the metaphor of hospitality, the different conceptions of power within the music instructional process, the forcefulness of recognition and its possibilities for music education, or the freshness of unpredictability as a principle in music teacher education—all of these perspectives relate specifically to the theory and practice of music education in the circumstances and predicaments in which music teachers currently find themselves. As with philosophers of the past, the writers’ ideas and suggestions link to the wider philosophical literature in the arts and education. Lauren Kapalka Richerme’s essay complements this symposium as she addresses issues of social justice, post-structuralism, and music education. Again, Richerme offers clear possibilities of these ideas for music education practice.This issue is especially heartening because music education philosophers of the past have thought of their role not only as critics of the status quo but also as architects of a more hopeful future. Our writers demonstrate that they too, like their forebears, see their task as a productive one of clarifying differing possibilities for music education and offering clear visions for those who teach and learn music and all who benefit from this work. Moreover, the differing lenses through which they see music education illustrate the potential benefits of taking a pluralistic approach to music education philosophy and of seeking and celebrating the resulting diversity of its practices. [End Page 2]Estelle R. JorgensenSarasota, FLCopyright © 2016 The Trustees of Indiana University...